The Detroit Red Wings’ playoff chances took a drastic hit with their most recent loss to the Montreal Canadiens. The Red Wings lost the game by a score of 4-1 after leading after the first period. The Red Wings had many chances against the Canadiens’ goalie, Sam Montembeault, who made 35 saves in the game. With five games remaining in the 2024-25 season, the team will once again look to the offseason, this time with head coach Todd McLellan having time to shape the team in the way he sees fit.
The Red Wings were tied with the Canadiens 1-1 before rookie defenseman Albert Johansson of the Red Wings’ helmet came off with 9:12 left in the third period. Risking a penalty, Johansson put his helmet back on, causing him to lose Josh Anderson, who scored his 15th goal of the season. Aside from this defensive lapse, Johansson has played very well for the Red Wings after being drafted 60th overall by the team in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.
Perhaps the Red Wings’ almost making the Stanley Cup playoffs last season was an aberration. The Red Wings went 13-17-4 in 34 games before firing Derek Lalonde on December 26th. At this time, the Red Wings were in sixth place in the Atlantic Division with 79 points. The Red Wings have won seven games in a row twice under McLellan. However, in this latest losing streak, Dylan Larkin has struggled to score.
This latest loss drew the Red Wings’ lack of shooting talent into stark focus. Larkin scored the opening goal of the game, but it would be the Red Wings’ only goal of the game. Larkin has scored 29 goals and added 36 assists in 77 games played for the Red Wings so far this season. During his 10-year career, he has broken the 80-goal mark four times. Alex DeBrincat leads the Red Wings in scoring with 35 goals in 77 games played. Larkin has only scored two goals and added four assists in the Red Wings’ last 10 games.
The Detroit Red Wings are only in position to almost being eliminated from playoff contention on April 8th because of the play of players such as Johansson and left-winger Lucas Raymond. Raymond is a young player in his own right who has scored 26 goals and added 49 assists in 77 games played for the Red Wings. These two players will be part of the corps of the Red Wings team when the team is once again in playoff contention. The most glaring question currently on the roster is the goaltending position.
Goaltender Sebastian Cossa was drafted by the Red Wings with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft out of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Cossa is seen as the “goalie of the future” as he makes his way through the Red Wings’ goalie pipeline. In 37 games played for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League, Cossa had a record of 20-12-6 with a 2.44 goals against average and a .911 save percentage. Cossa also earned his first win in the NHL this season after shutting out the Buffalo Sabres in December.
The climb to make the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons was always going to be a daunting one with the schedule that the Red Wings had down the stretch. The Red Wings will next face the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning in back-to-back games. March was a down month for the Red Wings, with a record of 4-10. This was the second season in a row, and March was the downfall for the Red Wings. If the Red Wings will make it back to the Stanley Cup Finals, they will need to play as much of a complete NHL season as possible.
ITR 39: Conference Finals – Inside The Rink
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